Making Over a Dated Bathroom

Noting Grace
by Noting Grace
7 Materials
$185
1 Day
Easy
Living in a dated home you’ve been loving back to life? Do you still have a to do list a mile long, but the budget has run out? Here’s how we updated our Master Bathroom when the money was tight.
We all have that one room that we desperately want to change, but sometimes more important things take priority over the eye sore. That’s what happened to us this summer. I was all set to rip out the insert and completely renovate this room, but something not so pretty and fun had to show up and ruin my DIY party.
Windows. Bor-ing! Yes, I know that they are important, and yes I’m aware of all the energy saving benefits, but windows aren’t snazzy like a room redo. Plus, I knew the cost of ripping out the shower stall and more importantly, the hidden cost of what problems could lie beneath so there was no way we could complete both projects financially.
When we had to replace our toilet, I suddenly looked at this room in a new light. The white and beige seemed to suddenly work. The existing floor tile had both colors as accents throughout, and I knew I could turn this around into a room I loved.
We wanted to create an accent wall behind the toilet and I had access to some wall boards through a contest I won. (But you could use pallet wood as well!) We measured the wall and marked where the studs were and devised a staggered plan to hang the pieces.
We opted for a solid piece on top as a keystone instead of 2 cut pieces and made sure it was level.
Using a pneumatic nail gun, we started popping the pieces in place.
As we went along, we continued to check the level to make sure we weren’t getting off track.
Applying the wood behind the toilet was tricky and we simply used the cut scraps to piece them in around each side of the toilet.
I wanted a wood element to tie in the shower, but the weathered boards weren’t long enough to span the opening. We decided to use left over deck wood to create a weathered cornice over the curtain rod. We removed the dated towel rack and replaced it with a creamy painted board with hooks for our towels.
I used sheers that I found at Walmart to brighten up the room and off set the beige tub insert.
I made this wreath for about $10 with supplies from Hobby Lobby. So you wanna know the final cost of our Master Bathroom makeover - including the new toilet?
Grand Total: $185 What?! From a magical toilet to a box of free wood made a dated, burn it to the ground bathroom go from drab to fab for less than $200! The entire project took just a weekend to complete, so not only was it cheap and easy, but it was a quick transformation as well! Here’s hoping you can turn an ugly room you hate into something you love like we did.
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Noting Grace
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  • Debi McCoy Debi McCoy on Oct 03, 2018

    why didn't you install the toilet after putting up the boards?

  • Faye B Faye B on Oct 03, 2018

    what did you do with the 2 x 6 @ the top. It looks kind of out of place going beyond the shower and being nailed therr


  • Kristin Kristin on Sep 26, 2019

    Did you seal it with anything for easy cleaning and sanitary concerns? Germs from toilets spray up to 6ft in all directions.. several feet even with the top closed...

    what did you use? Or do you have any recommendations?

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